Freeport says it paid govt. $1.4b in 2009

PT Freeport Indonesia, a subsidiary of US-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc, announced on Monday that it had paid its financial obligations to the government in 2009, a total of US$1.4 billion.

The company said in a statement that out of the $1.4 billion, $1 billion was corporate income tax, employee income tax, regional taxes and other taxes and levies, $128 million was royalties, and $213 million was dividends.

The 2009 amount is higher than the amount paid in the same period of 2008 which reached US$1.2 billion.

"The amount of the payment fluctuates as a result of commodity prices, sales and metal production rates," the company said.

Under its financial obligations as set out in the 1991 Contract of Work, from 1992 to 2009 Freeport Indonesia has paid the government a total of US$ 9.5 billion.

This sum is made up of payments for corporate income tax, employee income tax, regional taxes, and other taxes and levies totaling US$ 7.6 billion, US$ 1 billion in royalties, and US$ 900 million in dividends.

Freeport Indonesia operates one of the world’s biggest copper and gold mines in Papua.